Mike Arnholt

Executive Editor

Mike Arnhold was named executive editor at the Fayetteville Observer in 2009. He joined The Fayetteville Times in 1978, working as a copy editor, copy desk chief and features and was named managing editor when the Times and Observer were merged.

Arnholt came to Fayetteville in 1974 as a soldier reassigned from South Korea to Fort Bragg, where he served with a public information detachment in the 1st Corps Support Command.

[NC 0201] - Part 1: Intro and Contribution (4:14)

Mike Arnholt, executive editor, The Fayetteville Observer, has been at the newspaper since August 1978. Arnholt says The Observer is a family-owned newspaper with “a stake in the community.” “We see ourselves as a community institution,” says Arnholt, “just as a hospital or a school does.”

[NC 0202] - Part 2: Ethics & Content (5:19)

Mike Arnholt, executive editor, The Fayetteville Observer, says his staff is guided by the SPJ code of ethics. “The veteran editing staff and reporters are very good at seeing the red flags and bringing in stories for discussion,” says Arnholt.

[NC 0203] - Part 3: Strategic Changes (7:17)

Mike Arnholt, executive editor, The Fayetteville Observer, says five years ago The Observer’s website staff was separate from the print news staff. Now, says Arnholt, “We are working hard to make sure that everyone in our newsroom is as focused on our website as they are on our newspaper.”

[NC 0204] - Part 4: Adaptation & the Future (4:27)

Mike Arnholt, executive editor, The Fayetteville Observer, says he expects that The Observer will have to deal with an environment of ever-changing news delivery systems as time passes, and if he and his news staff cannot adapt to using them, “we are going to be left behind.”

[NC 0205] - Part 5: Prospects & Preparation (1:29)

Mike Arnholt, executive editor, The Fayetteville Observer, says job candidates “must understand the multi-media of most newspapers.” And learning videography and how to use InDesign software are very useful skills.